HRC/NONE/2015/146

(Translated from Arabic)

Responses to the questionnaire to assess the human rights implications of the implementation of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing

Question 1

The Ministry of Social Development cares for older persons in accordance with the law under which it was established, the Ministry of Social Development Act No. 14 of 1956. It is assisted in its task by other ministries and organizations.

Directives concerning authorization for old people’s homes were issued in 2001 and directives concerning authorization for day centres in 1999. They have since been updated with the issue of Regulation No. 81 of 2012, concerning care homes and centres for older persons. Pursuant to that Regulation, directives regarding authorization for day centres for older persons and directives regarding authorization for shelter homes were issued in 2013.

There are 10 authorized care homes, 3 of which are privately run and 7 of which are part of the voluntary sector. There are no State-run institutions. The number of day centres is four.

The Government defrays the residency costs for poor older persons in homes for the elderly, the sick or those unable to look after themselves.

Jordan recently introduced an important constitutional provision concerning older persons in article 6 (5) of the Jordanian Constitution as amended in 2011. The article states that the law shall protect “older persons, including those with disabilities, and guard them against ill-treatment”. The aim of this provision is to shield older persons from violence.

State institutions, private entities and the voluntary sector collaborated in the National Strategy for Older Persons 2008-2012. Its implementation was overseen by the National Council for Family Affairs and the Strategy is currently being updated by a committee formed with the approval of the Office of the Prime Minister.

Table showing issues and objectives related to different aspects of the Jordanian National Strategy for Older Persons (reference document)

Aspect 1: Older persons and development / Issue 1: Participation of older persons in developing programmes and drafting national plans / Objective 1: Increasing the participation of older persons in decision-making processes at all levels
Issue 2: Work, income and poverty / Objective 1: Improving living conditions, especially for poor older persons
Issue 3: Older persons in rural areas and nomadic communities / Objective 1: Improving living conditions for older persons in rural areas and nomadic communities
Issue 4: Older persons and emigration / Objective 1: Reintegrating older persons who have emigrated into the community
Objective 2: Ensuring a dignified life for older persons whose children have emigrated abroad
Issue 5: Continuing education and training / Objective 1: Eradicating illiteracy among older persons especially women
Objective 2: Capacity-building among older persons who wish to work, and retraining them for the labour market
Objective 3: Using the experience and know-how of older persons as workers or volunteers
Aspect 2: Health care for older persons / Issue 1: Preventive health care for older persons / Objective 1: Encouraging healthy lifestyles in the community in order to improve the health of older persons
Objective 2: Developing comprehensive preventive health-care services in the fields of bodily, mental and social health
Objective 3: Building capacity among health-care personnel vis-à-vis preventive care and the needs of older persons
Issue 2: Curative health care for older persons / Objective 1: Developing comprehensive curative health care services in the fields of bodily, mental and social health
Objective 2: Building capacity among health care personnel vis-à-vis curative care and the needs of older persons
Issue 3: Rehabilitative health care for older persons / Objective 1: Developing comprehensive rehabilitative health-care services in the fields of bodily, mental and social health
Objective 2: Building capacity among health-care personnel vis-à-vis rehabilitative care and the needs of older persons
Aspect 3: A supportive environment for older persons / Issue 1: Special housing and care homes / Objective 1: Creating special housing commensurate with the needs of older persons
Objective 2: Creating care homes commensurate with the needs of older persons
Issue 2: Public buildings and public facilities / Objective 1: Adapting public buildings and public facilities for older persons
Objective 2: Creating a friendly traffic environment for older persons
Objective 3: Providing vehicles adapted for older persons
Aspect 4: Social care for older persons / Issue 1: Social services for older persons and support for caregivers / Objective 1: Providing older persons with social services
Objective 2: Providing support to those caring for older persons
Issue 2: Community participation of older persons / Objective 1: Promoting the participation of older persons in the community
Objective 2: Putting in place programmes for older women in order to ensure they can enjoy a dignified life
Issue 3: Violence against older persons / Objective 1: Protecting older persons against violence
Objective 2: Developing human resources in order to improve the institutional capabilities of bodies which work to protect older persons from violence
Issue 4: How older persons are viewed in the community / Objective 1: Promoting a positive view of older persons in the community
Objective 2: Promoting intergenerational solidarity
Issue 5: Partnership and coordination among institutions working with older persons / Objective 1: Promoting partnership and coordination among institutions of the State, the private sector and civil society which work with older persons
Objective 2: Promoting a sense of social responsibility in the private sector
Aspect 5: Academic research and databases / Issue 1: Study and research concerning older persons / Objective 1: Establishing a national centre for study and research into ageing
Objective 2: Networking and partnerships with national, regional and international centres which conduct research into ageing
Aspect 6: Legislation / Issue 1: Legislation and laws concerning older persons and development / Objective 1: Promoting legislation and laws which help older persons participate in development
Issue 2: Legislation and laws concerning the provision of preventive, curative and rehabilitative health care / Objective 1: Promoting legislation and laws concerning the provision of preventive, curative and rehabilitative health care
Issue 3: Legislation and laws to create a supportive environment for older persons / Objective 1: Promoting legislation and laws to create a supportive environment for older persons
Issue 4: Legislation and laws concerning social care for older persons / Objective 1: Promoting legislation and laws to protect older persons from violence
Objective 2: Promoting legislation and laws to ensure that older persons can be cared for in their own families

Jordan has 47 centres offering home nursing care and 85 health centres offering round-the-clock services. All these belong to the private sector and are licensed by the Ministry of Health. Moreover, humanitarian care associations offer free home palliative care for cancer sufferers, including older persons.

One law affecting health care for older persons is the High Health Council Act No. 9 of 1999 which sets forth the principal health-care policies and the strategy for their implementation. The Act regulates activities and develops all sectors in the area of health care in order to improve services for all citizens using the most up-to-date practices and advanced scientific techniques.

Article 4 (g) of the Public Health Act No. 47 of 2008 includes specific provision relating to the health of older persons and for monitoring the institutions which provide them with care.

At the end of 2013, there were nine State-run centres providing care for older persons. Of these, two were in rural areas: Sakhra and Rageb.

Over recent years Jordan has seen a significant increase in rates of life expectancy at birth. They have gone up from 71.6 years for men and 74.4 years for women in 2009 to 72.7 years for men and 76.7 years for women in 2013. This represents an increase of 1.1 years for men and 2.3 years for women.

In the year 2010, 76.3 per cent of elderly Jordanian citizens of all categories had health insurance coverage, according to estimates of the Ministry of Health, and that figure currently stands at 85 per cent. The proportion of older persons benefiting from civil health insurance (Ministry of Health) stood at around 6.3 per cent in 2013.

Question 2

The State-run National Assistance Fund provides older persons with aid in three forms: regular monthly assistance amounting to 45 Jordanian dinars (JD) per person, occasional emergency assistance and physical rehabilitation assistance in the form of medical devices for needy older persons. The latter is distributed pursuant to Directive No. 2 of 2012, concerning financial assistance for the protection of needy families. Under article 20 (a) of the Directive, physical rehabilitation assistance is to be provided by defraying the costs of purchasing assistive devices for persons in need, including older persons.

Thanks to the National Assistance Fund, in 2013, 25.4 per cent of the beneficiaries who received assistive devices through State-run physical rehabilitation programmes were older persons.

A total of 26,937 families received assistance for older members in the period between 2015 and the present, and the total amount disbursed stands at JD 11,251,878. According to article 11 (c) of Directive No. 2 of 2012, concerning financial assistance for the protection of needy families, regular monthly assistance is to be paid to older persons and their families who are living below the poverty line.

Article 12 (a) (viii) contains provision for the payment of temporary monthly assistance to families in need who are living below the poverty line. Such cases are considered as humanitarian cases and they usually involve older persons.

The National Assistance Fund has created a new directorate to train children of families who receive payments from the Fund in order to help them acquire qualifications, find appropriate work and so improve the family’s income. Many families of older persons have benefited from this initiative.

Older persons with disabilities are provided with assistive devices by the Higher Council for People with Disabilities. As of 2013, 2,428 older persons of both sexes had benefited from that service.

Financial assistance is also available through the Zakat Fund. Under article 8 (a) (3) of Act No. 8 of 1988, a part of the Fund’s revenues shall be distributed by Zakat committees throughout the country for the benefit of the physically infirm; i.e., older persons.

According to article 3 (1) and (2) of Directive No. 1 of 2002, concerning the principles regulating the payment of the Zakat, as amended, indigent or widowed older persons who do not have a fixed source of income shall benefit from Zakat payments which are distributed by Zakat committees throughout the country.

Older beneficiaries of aid from the Zakat Fund account for around 1.6 per cent of all the Fund’s beneficiaries while the sums payed out to them amount to around 1.1 per cent of the Fund’s total aid payments. It should be pointed out that the Zakat Fund is principally intended for poor children, especially orphans.

The Disabled Persons Act No. 31 of 2007 also caters for older persons with disabilities. They are able to access the services they require, on an equal footing with other age groups, depending upon their disability and without discrimination.

Under Regulation No. 14 of 2013, which governs exemptions for persons with disabilities and was issued as part of the Disabled Persons Act No. 31 of 2007, the Ministry of Social Development admits exemptions for the employment of domestic workers. According to article 10 of the Regulation, “persons with a disability or their guardians, if they fulfil the required conditions, are exempted from the payment of taxes on work permits for non-Jordanian nationals employed for domestic service and from payment of any additional sum”. Directives regarding those exemptions were issued as part of the Regulations.

Directives governing exemptions for special vehicles for the use of persons with disabilities set forth the conditions whereby such vehicles may be obtained duty free. The directives also accommodate older persons, without discrimination.

The initiative “Amman, age-friendly city” was launched in 2007. Since then no other city has been named as an age-friendly city.

The Guide to Building for Persons with Special Needs is an important reference document which will help to create a supportive environment that will also benefit to persons. The Guide was prepared by the special needs unit of the Greater Amman Municipality which, drawing from the American Act for Persons with Disabilities, worked in cooperation with the Royal Scientific Society, the Ministry of Public Works and Housing, the National Building Council, the Jordanian Engineers’ Association and the Higher Council for People with Disabilities. The Guide details the needs and specifications for disability-friendly building regulations, which will also benefit older persons. It covers private homes as well as public facilities, streets, pavements, etc.

The building permit booklet issued by the Greater Amman Municipality includes a section on building requirements for disabled persons and, when issuing a building permit or a licence to carry out works, the Municipality stresses that all those requirements must be fulfilled. This per se also meets the needs of older persons. The Municipality has also affixed notices stating that elderly persons must be given priority in their dealings with the Municipality and on public seating in parks and squares.

Most government offices are fitted with ramps to facilitate the access and movement of older persons and persons with special needs.

The updated Regulation No. 81 of 2012, concerning care homes and centres for older persons and the associated directives issued by the Ministry of Social Development set forth the general conditions for licensing such institutions. The most important of these is that they fulfil the specifications contained in the building code.

According to the records of the Ministry of Labour, each year around 2,500 migrant workers provide home care for older persons. However, it is not possible to determine the total number of such persons who are currently involved in that activity.

Question 4

As of the end of 2013, 2.4 per cent of the workforce was made up of older persons. About 0.4 per cent of them continue to work in teaching and academic positions in State and private universities where current staff regulations allow them to remain in service after having reached the age of 60. The same applies to the judiciary where judges can remain in service until reaching the age of 70. Most working older persons are employed as financial or legal advisers, business leaders in the public and private sectors and in family-run firms.